Hunter Biden is quite familiar with negative press. The son of the president has battled alcoholism and drug abuse, both of which were hot topics during Joe Biden's run. His issues spiraled in 2015 after the untimely death of his brother, Beau, which is something that dad Joe Biden also deeply struggled with.
The good news is that Hunter has managed to conquer these issues. And he's opened up about the struggles of addiction. His journey has become eye-opening for many who've suffered from the same, and he should be proud of the work he's done on getting to a healthier place.
But there were other aspects about Hunter that people seemed confused by — one being his relationship with Hallie Biden, who was married to Beau at the time of his death.
Hunter had no problem clearing the air in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning's Tracy Smith. He recalls that Beau's death in 2015 brought him closer to Beau's widow, Hallie. Around the time of Beau's death, Hunter was divorcing his first wife, Kathleen.
Beau's cause of death was brain cancer, and his death left a hole in the family. Joe and Beau had a very close relationship, much in part due to the fact that Beau had a similar love of politics. He was also on the Delaware National Guard. Several times, Beau gave popular public speeches honoring his father and his father's time as a single dad after their mom and younger sister died in a car accident back in 1972.
Hunter and Beau also had a strong relationship, thus making it even harder to process Beau's diagnosis in 2013. Hallie and Beau had been married for 11 years at that stage. Hallie was a schoolteacher from Delaware who also had Joe's seal of approval. Supposedly, Joe talked to and consulted with Hallie before running for president.
Hallie knew a lot of Hunter's struggles, but the two bonded over their shared grief — which is actually quite common. Two years after Beau's death, the two had a romantic relationship. Hunter knew that it would be confusing and perhaps a bit strange to tell the family about.
"I think people were confused by it," Hunter admitted to CBS, per People. "And I understand that. I mean, I really do. To me, it's not something that is difficult to explain. Because it came out of a real overwhelming grief that we both shared. And we were together, and trying to do the right thing. And that grief turned into a hope for a love that maybe could replace what we lost."
After Hunter came clean about the relationship, many people cut ties with him. Joe Biden reportedly found out more about the relationship when he was asked to comment on it publicly. As he told Page Six, "We are all lucky that Hunter and Hallie found each other as they were putting their lives together again after such sadness. They have mine and Jill's full and complete support and we are happy for them."
But as the New York Post suggests, Hunter had to really beg his father to support the union publicly. Back in 2017, Hunter told his father that it would be good for the grandkids to have his back. That's something that seemed to resonate a lot with Joe.
"'Dad,' I told him, 'if people find out, but they think you're not approving of this, it makes it seem wrong,'" Hunter wrote in his book. "'The kids have to know there’s nothing wrong with this, and the one person who can tell them that is you,'" he continued. Still, it must have been a shock to Joe to learn at the time.
Still, Hunter admitted to CBS that it was a really bad time for him. "Well, I made a lot of decisions that I probably shouldn't have made," he said. "There was a lot more compassion and understanding from the people that knew me. But it was a horrible time, too."
Even more awkwardly, the relationship didn't end up working and fizzled out after two years. Hunter quickly got married again afterward to Melissa Cohen. In March 2020, the two had their first child — a boy named Beau. That, too, struck followers as being a bit odd after he'd had a relationship with Beau's widow.
Regardless of the decisions that Hunter makes, he's been quite clear that he's still very close to his father. And throughout time, Joe has proved his loyalty to his family. Joe was even involved with Hunter's intervention, which was a tough moment for the Biden family. According to Hunter, his dad had "grabbed me, swung me around, and hugged me. He held me tight in the dark and cried for the longest time."
Hunter's issues with substance abuse started young. "Drinking seemed to solve every unanswered question about why I felt the way I felt," he admitted. "It took away my inhibitions, my insecurities, and often my judgment. It made me feel complete, filling a hole I didn't even realize was there — a feeling of loss and my sense of not being understood or fitting in."
He credits his current wife for helping him stay sober. His openness to tell all sides of his story — even the parts that may seem ugly — will hopefully help others in his position. Drugs and alcohol put a huge damper on his life, and sobriety is something Hunter will need to work on for the rest of his life. He's already admitted a few setbacks, but he seems to be on a much healthier path.
Joe's support also has a lot to do with it. It's obvious that no matter what, Joe is a family man at heart. In fact, even though he didn't run for president in 2016 due to his grief over Beau, his eldest son still occupied his mind during his recent win. "Beau should be the one running for president, not me," he told Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough, per Biography. "Every morning I get up, Joe, not a joke, and I think to myself, 'Is he proud of me?'" Surely he thinks a lot about Hunter and Hunter's sobriety journey in a similar way.
